Cryptographic ASIC for key hierarchy enforcement

Abstract

A cryptographic ASIC and method for enforcing a derivative key hierarchy for managing an information stream. A programming user provides a user passphrase that is used to generate a transform key and is then deleted. The transform key is inaccessibly, invisibly, and indelibly generated and stored in a one-time programmable memory with externally generated programming pulses during or after manufacture, without being reported out to the user who provided the user passphrase. A transform-enabled cryptographic circuit or method customized with the transform key processes a predetermined input message to obtain a predetermined output message indicating an identity of a particular information stream. Other input messages may also be processed, such as for verifying a blockchain, but replication requires knowledge of the transform key. Only a programming user with knowledge of the user passphrase is capable of creating an information stream, such as a blockchain.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A non-transitory machine-readable storage medium storing a set of instructions that, when executed by at least one processor, causes the at least one processor to perform actions for managing operations on an information stream, the actions comprising:
 deriving a transform key from a temporary copy of a user passphrase; 
 storing the transform key in a one-time programmable memory using programming pulses from external circuitry, with the transform key inaccessible from outside the cryptographic integrated circuit after being stored; 
 processing an input message from the information stream by:
 hashing the input message: 
 performing a customized transforming of the hash of the input message, with the transforming customized based on the transform key and comprising at least one of bit inversion and bit transposition, to obtain a transformed hash; and 
 hashing the transformed hash into an output result; and 
 creating the information stream based on the output result, wherein the information stream is a blockchain. 
 
 
     
     
       2. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of  claim 1 , wherein the transform key is derived by processing the user passphrase through at least one one-way function (OWF). 
     
     
       3. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of  claim 2 , wherein the transform key is derived from the user passphrase by a sequential application of at least two OWFs to the user passphrase. 
     
     
       4. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of  claim 1 , the actions further comprising identifying the information stream using an identifier generated by processing a predetermined input message. 
     
     
       5. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of  claim 1 , wherein knowledge of the transform key enables replication of the cryptographic method. 
     
     
       6. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of  claim 1 , wherein the transform key is derived and stored during manufacture of a cryptographic integrated circuit that executes the cryptographic method. 
     
     
       7. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of  claim 1 , wherein the transform key is derived and stored after manufacture of a cryptographic integrated circuit that executes the cryptographic method. 
     
     
       8. A cryptographic system for managing operations on an information stream, the system comprising:
 means for deriving a transform key from a temporary copy of a user passphrase by processing the user passphrase through at least one one-way function (OWF); 
 means for storing the transform key in a one-time programmable memory using programming pulses from external circuitry, with the transform key inaccessible from outside the cryptographic integrated circuit after being stored; 
 means for processing an input message from the information stream by hashing the input message, performing a customized transforming of the hash of the input message, with the transforming customized based on the transform key and comprising at least one of bit inversion and bit transposition, and hashing the transformed hash into an output result; and 
 means for creating the information stream based on the output result, wherein the information stream is a blockchain. 
 
     
     
       9. The cryptographic system of  claim 8 , wherein the transform key is derived from the user passphrase by a sequential application of at least two OWFs to the user passphrase. 
     
     
       10. The cryptographic system of  claim 8 , the actions further comprising identifying the information stream using an identifier generated by processing a predetermined input message. 
     
     
       11. The cryptographic system of  claim 8 , wherein knowledge of the transform key enables replication of the cryptographic method. 
     
     
       12. The cryptographic system of  claim 8 , wherein the transform key is derived and stored during manufacture of a cryptographic integrated circuit that executes the cryptographic method. 
     
     
       13. The cryptographic system of  claim 8 , wherein the transform key is derived and stored after manufacture of a cryptographic integrated circuit that executes the cryptographic method.